Flash Of Their Lives
by Klutzygirl33
Summary: Set post-series. Marshall and Lily welcome two more children - both daughters - over the course of their marriage.


**I don't own HIMYM and never will. No copyright infringement intended.**

_Author's Note_: Aly Tweeted a photo last week of her daughters, Satyana and Keeva, on set during filming of the series finale. And while they definitely could have been visiting her, I can't shake the feeling they may be playing Marshall and Lily's daughters. Hope you enjoy!

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When Lily felt that familiar twinge of sickness she experienced during her pregnancy with Marvin only five weeks after Barney and Robin's wedding, she immediately guessed what was going on in her body. She stopped off at the pharmacy to buy a pregnancy test and then headed back home. Marvin was playing with her dad. "Hey, Lily. He was a good boy today."

"Hi, Dad. And hi to you too, Marvin." The baby looked up at her, smiling, and she just melted. Another one of these would just add to the amazingness of their family.

"What do you have in that bag?" A curious Mickey cocked his head and stared at his daughter.

She quickly hid it behind her back. "Nothing. Just something I picked up for me later tonight. Don't worry about it." Lily didn't think her father was buying this, but she hoped he didn't push.

"Okay." Mickey didn't buy it for a second, but he kissed his daughter and grandson and then left the apartment.

As much as Lily wanted to know for sure if she was pregnant again, she wanted to wait until Marshall was home to take the test. She had surprised him last time, but wanted to play it differently this time around. She wanted him by her side when the results came in. So for the time being, she sat down to play with her son.

When Marshall walked through the door, Marvin toddled over to him and clung to his legs until he was picked up. "I missed you too, buddy." A few minutes later, he sat the toddler down so he could talk to his wife.

She grabbed his arms. "Come with me."

"Are we going to have sex, Lil? I'm totally down with that, but we should put Marvin to bed first."

"Nothing like that. We'll be out in a few minutes." Lily dragged him into the bathroom and produced the pregnancy test box.

He looked it at for a few seconds and once he was done processing this, Marshall looked up at her. "Are you pregnant?"

"I'm feeling the same way I did during my first pregnancy. Not completely sure yet, mind you, but that's why we're in here. Keep the door open." Lily didn't want to lose track of Marvin, although there wasn't much he could get into.

So they waited impatiently for the result that would determine their futures. "Lilypad, I'm sure you're right about being pregnant again, but I want to talk about if you aren't."

Lily looked up at Marshall. "Yeah?" She was confused as to where this conversation was going next.

He sighed. "If the test is negative, I think we should start trying. I know Marvin is just a little over a year old now, but we can do this. We're most likely going to have to anyway."

She laughed. "Okay, sure. I'm in, but pretty sure we won't have to try anyway." She was convinced of her pregnancy now.

"Well we could still have sex. Always up for that."

"And that's why we're in this position so soon." Make-up sex before Barney and Robin's wedding had totally been worth it.

Sure enough, Lily's intuition was right – the test was positive. Marshall and Lily's second child was on the way. Like last time, they tried to hide it from their friends but failed. And Ted's new girlfriend was surprisingly perceptive. Lily really liked her. "How did you know?" she asked the younger woman.

She shrugged. "I just noticed the signs. Plus, you haven't been drinking anything in two weeks and since you people are all alcoholics – no judgment here – I figured it out quickly. Congratulations."

"That's what got us figured out last time," Marshall whispered.

Lily elbowed him. "Thank you." She hoped this relationship would last for Ted. The two of them were eerily alike, but it worked for them.

With another baby on the way, Marshall and Lily couldn't stay in the apartment. Giving it up for good was pretty hard for the entire group. "I'm going to miss this place so much," Robin told Barney, leaning back into her husband's arms.

"We all will. Have a lot of good memories here. But we'll make new memories at Marshall and Lily's house," Barney assured her.

"Yeah, you're right." Robin turned around and kissed him.

"Are you two going to keep making out or are you actually going to help us?" Lily glared daggers at her friends, scaring the hell out of them both.

The first night in their new house was a little weird, but Marshall and Lily refused to give up on this. They'd get past the initial homesickness and missing their apartment soon. Unfortunately, with more space to explore, Marvin could get into more trouble. Since Lily couldn't run after him like she used to, Mickey temporarily moved in with them (something neither liked, but he was pretty helpful).

Three months after they moved in, Marshall and Lily brought home Lucy Diane. The little red-haired newborn had a hold on their hearts the instant she was brought into the world. Marvin was a little jealous of his younger sister, but they understood why. It wasn't an easy adjustment at first.

"My baby?" the toddler asked one day.

Lily teared up. "Yeah, Lucy's your baby. You want to hold her?" At her son's eager nod, she made him sit on the couch and gently deposited the baby in Marvin's lap. Marshall snapped a quick picture of the moment.

"These are our children," Lily whispered. She still couldn't believe sometimes that she and Marshall had been together for so long and had now produced two children. It was surreal sometimes.

After that, Marvin and Lucy were okay together. They still had issues like all siblings did, but that was okay. It was normal sibling rivalry.

About three years after Lucy's birth – and shortly after Ted and his wife welcomed Luke - Marshall and Lily started seriously talking about expanding their family again. "You really want another baby?" Marshall figured that they were done since they had a son and a daughter.

"You always said you wanted four kids – which isn't happening by the way – and I wanted two, but three is a nice compromise." Lily had been thinking about for a while. At least Marvin and Lucy were out of diapers so they'd only have one kid in them. And she was ready, albeit a little bit scared, to add to their family.

"Three kids is good enough for me." He laughed. "So we're trying again."

"We're trying again," Lily confirmed.

Fortunately for them, they conceived within three weeks (Lily was never really sure if she was already pregnant when they had that conversation, but she wouldn't doubt it) after they started trying. They were glad the house had enough rooms so no one had to share and cause even more fights (neither was looking forward to their household becoming even more chaotic with a third child).

Dealing with a surprise (some would even said miracle) pregnancy of her own, Robin bonded with Lily even more. They went out shopping a lot, although Lily didn't need that much baby stuff – they still had stuff left over from Marvin and Lucy.

"You made pregnancy look easy, but it is not. Barney's pretty good to me, though," Robin admitted. Her husband had stepped up to the plate, surprising her.

"Of course he is. The man worships the ground you walk on." Everyone knew that.

Just a month after that conversation, Marshall and Lily's third and final child and their second daughter was born. It took them a while to decide on her name, but they eventually settled on Hadley Violet. It was their most daring name choice, but they really loved it. Marvin and Lucy weren't happy about their little sister at first, but they grew to love her.

Hadley was almost two when they all met up at the bar – with their kids – before a night out with their families. "I have no idea why we decided to do this," Ted's wife whispered to Lily and Robin. The girls laughed.

"We're crazy," Ted offered.

"No, that's just you." Barney smiled at his friend when he glared at him.

"Let's never agree to do this again, okay? It's easier when we're all at a house." Ted was already regretting this decision immensely.

Lily and Marshall parked the girls in their booth while Marvin talked to Penny about something. They were pretty close. "I think we have some future drinkers on our hands," Robin told her as they watched Lucy and Hadley babble at each other.

Lily snorted. "Would not surprise me."

"Same here. We're all functioning alcoholics." Ted's wife shrugged when they stared at her.

Marshall and Lily were exhausted by the time they got home, but that was okay – all three of their children were too (which had been the plan). "I love you, Marshmallow."

"I love you too, Lilypad." He leaned over and kissed her. Before they could get any further, they were interrupted by Marvin running in and jumping on the bed because of a nightmare. Lucy and Hadley joined them within half an hour. Now they were separated by their children, but neither minded. They tickled Marvin, Lucy, and Hadley until they fell back asleep.

Marshall and Lily's life had turned out better than they had ever expected. They had jobs they loved, a nice house, awesome friends, well-behaved nieces and nephews (sometimes) and three great (if sometimes mischievous) children.


End file.
